Municipal elections are October 26 in Ontario. To help voters make an informed decision here in Cornwall, the editorial board of The Seeker has put together 10 questions for candidates seeking a seat at the municipal council table, whether as Councillor or as Mayor. To ensure fairness, the same questions were sent to every candidate. We sent a total of 10 and they had the option to answer all of them, or pick a minimum of 5. Their answers will be published in their entirety, in the order they are received. We will not edit, correct or modify any responses.
These are Jason Riley’s Answers. He is running for Councillor.
Who are you? Where are you from? What education do you have? What relevant experience do you have?
My name is Jason Riley, and I am running for Cornwall City Council. I was born and raised here in Cornwall and lived here my entire life. I am a husband, father, and grandfather. I am a proud graduate of St. Joseph’s Secondary School and St. Lawrence College. For the past 19 years, I have worked at IBM where my job is to help large multinational companies solve complex problems. For the better part of 35 years I have been volunteering in our community with a variety of organizations, non-profits and youth sporting clubs. Since the last election cycle, I sat on three city committees and have served as the vice-chair of ACCFutures which is a non-profit that helps businesses and entrepreneurs in Cornwall, SD&G and Akwesasne.
In The Seeker’s poll asking constituents about the most important issue facing them, a large majority of respondents answered “taxes/affordability”. What would you do as a Councillor/Mayor to make Cornwall more affordable, and what city services or spending, if any, would you be willing to reduce, change or eliminate to keep tax increases under control?
Affordability and taxes are a real concern. When the current term of council took office in November 2022 the city was approximately $52M in debt. By the time they leave office in November 2026 they will have doubled that debt.
We cannot continue to undertake every capital project all at one, we cannot continue to simply green light every request for additional funds on projects that are already over budget.
I believe in fiscal responsibility. We need a more balanced and responsible approach of managing our finances. My approach is fairly simple, set clear priorities, spend responsibly and make thought decisions that put taxpayers first. That means planning for the long term, improving oversight on major projects and making sure every investment provides value to our community.
Municipal government has a responsibility to provide services to its residents, but if we cannot control our spending, then the next thing is to cut services. Services that our residents rely on every day, and that is something that I am not comfortable with.
Over the past few years, many constituents have expressed concern that the city’s homelessness situation has significantly worsened. What would you do as a Councillor/Mayor to address this issue?
Homelessness is a real concern, not just in Cornwall but sadly, across the province and the country. In my opinion homelessness is often a symptom of other underlying issues, and until we can address the other issues, we can’t really make a difference with homelessness.
I would like to see Cornwall partner with SD&G and Akwesasne, and with the help of the provincial and federal government provide more access to mental health support, and in some cases, addiction support. I feel that by working together we can bring more resources to our region and ensure people receive the support that they truly need.
I believe everyone deserves the opportunity to have a safe place to live, and have access to the services that will help them to succeed.
Why are you running for Council? What is the most important issue facing the City of Cornwall today?
I am a lifelong resident of Cornwall. I raised my family here and now my family is raising their families here. I care deeply about Cornwall and believe that it has tremendous potential.
If I had to pick only one issue as the most important issue to Cornwall today, I would say fiscal responsibility. With a current debt of $100M+ we need to be more fiscally responsible. That amount of debt is not sustainable.
I do believe that Cornwall has other issues that deserve talking about.
I believe that city council has an important role to play in creating an environment where businesses can succeed. That means support our local businesses, encouraging entrepreneurs, attracting new investment and making it easier for organizations to grow and create jobs. With my work with ACCFutures I have seen firsthand the challenges that businesses face, but I have also seen what is possible when organizations work together to support innovation, investment and economic growth.
Housing and community support is also a very important issue that Cornwall faces. If elected, I will support stronger collaboration between the City of Cornwall, SD&G and Akwesasne with senior levels of government to improve access to mental health support, addiction support and housing.
Many constituents have expressed concerns about accountability and controversy surrounding Council. What could you do as a Councillor/Mayor to improve transparency and accountability?
Cornwall deserves a City Hall that’s open, honest and accountable. Too many residents of Cornwall have told me they don’t understand why decisions are made. The don’t feel like they are being heard. It’s time for that to change.
The one thing that I have learned while working with IBM is best way to build trust is that through good communication, accountability for your actions, and following through on your commitments. I plan to bring those same values to City Council.
My commitment to you is that I will be responsible, I will listen and if needed explain my decisions. You might not always agree with the decisions that I make if elected, but I promise that I will explain my side and what I voted the way that I did. I plan to be the type of councillor who responds to residents who reach out to me.
We constantly hear about the Art Centre and the water meters. Many residents have expressed the view that these were bad decisions on Council’s part. Both projects are being implemented, but they remain a sore spot for some voters. Would you consider revisiting or changing decisions made on those projects?
In 2022 when I ran for City Council, I was against water meters, mainly because I felt they would put added financial pressure on families who were already feeling the burden of the rising cost of living. I am still against water meters today for that same reason. The problem is that, in order to revisit the water meter project, it would take a councillor who originally voted for water meters to make a motion to re-examine it, followed by a two-thirds vote of Council. It is simply not something that I can do on my own if elected.
The Arts Centre is a little different. We can’t get back the money that has already been spent. If I had been a councillor at the time, I would have asked questions to better understand the request for additional funding and explored cost-saving options.
What would you do to improve our relationship with Akwesasne? What does Truth and Reconciliation look like to you? Explain how Cornwall can take steps toward it.
In my opinion the best way to improve our relationship with Akwesasne is to work with Indigenous leaders and ensuring that their voices are included in the conversations that affect our communities. We need to look for meaningful opportunities for partnership. With the doors set to open on the Art Centre later this year, I think it is an excellent opportunity to display Indigenous art and cultural works as a part of our Truth and Reconciliation journey. It is not all that can and should be done but it is a good start.
Cornwall’s municipal government relies on experienced and qualified staff to deliver services to residents. What would you do as a Councillor/Mayor to ensure the city can attract, retain and support the best possible people in senior positions?
The first thing that I would like to do is understand why there has been so much turnover as of late. Until we can understand the culture of the workplace we cannot truly make recommendations on how best to attract and retain staff.
As a candidate for City Council, I am not privied to such information. I would like to speak with staff to hear their suggestions and recommendations for having the best possible work environment. In my opinion, employees who are happy are productive employees, and will have a much higher retention rate.
Healthcare is primarily a provincial responsibility, but access to healthcare is a major concern for Cornwall residents. What can the City of Cornwall realistically do to help improve healthcare access, and would you make it a priority as a Councillor/Mayor?
I think the City of Cornwall’s medical recruitment program has worked well and has attracted some good new doctors to our area recently. This is a great first step. The more people who have access to a family doctor, the less of a burden it places on hospitals and medical clinics.
Something that I read recently, and I am not sure if it would work in Ontario, but some municipalities in B.C. are setting up medical clinics where they employ the doctors and staff and bill “OHIP” directly. This seems to be working well in B.C. because it takes the burden of paperwork and billing out of the doctors’ hands and allows them to focus on medicine. I think at the very least municipalities in Ontario should examine this model.
Many residents are concerned about crime, vandalism, drug use and a general decline in their sense of safety. What can the city realistically do to address these concerns, and where should municipal responsibility end and provincial or federal responsibility begin?
I believe that the city of Cornwall has a role to play even if policing, the justice system and much of the response to mental health and addiction services fall under the provincial and federal governments. Working with the Cornwall Police Service I would support adding more Auxillary members to help augment our current staffing level. Auxillary members we can help support programs and initiatives that work towards improving community safety and crime prevention.
We can ensure that our parks and public spaces are well maintained and designed to be safe. Working with senior levels of government we can also look at additional support for underlying issues that can contribute to crime, including mental health and addiction.
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